BEVERLY HILLS, April 28, (THEWILL) –Â In the first leg of the 2020/2021 UEFA Champions League semi-final fixture, Karim Benzema became the joint-fourth highest scorer in the European competition’s history with an equalising belter for La Liga giants Real Madrid, helping them to a comeback at home to earn a tight 1-1 draw with Chelsea.
The scoreline at the Estadio Alfredo di Stefano leaves the determination of this semi-final finely-poised as Real allowed the English Premier League side recently known for strict thriftiness at the backline find an away goal, which, if there was anything to learn since the German, Thomas Tuchel, took over at Stamford Bridge, is something that ought to have been avoided at all costs.
Apart from Porto, in Europe, and West Bromwich Albion, in the Premiership, it has been absolutely difficult breaching the Chelsea defense, a lesson that Diego Simeone’s Atletico Madrid found out the hard way when they conceded “at home” to Chelsea in the first leg and could not find a way to break through the rock solid defense of Tuchel’s Chelsea on the return fixture leading to their exit from Europe.
Zinedine Zidane’s pedigree in the Champions League is a different kettle of fish, however. The Frenchman has triumphed in the oddest of circumstances, finding victories where it seemed toughest and winning when it appeared difficult and only the ignorant will bet against him. His triple consecutive Champions League titles were unthinkable in the past until he not only defended it for the first time in history but won three times in a row.
In his countryman, Benzema, Zidane has found the right key to unlock Real’s obstacles on their well-trodden path to European success. The French star cushioned a header into his own path and flashed home a superb equaliser on 29 minutes after Christian Pulisic had shown excellent composure to round Thibaut Courtois and give the visitors an early lead. It was a continuation of Benzema’s excellent season and wrote him into the history books.
Although, the north London club was the more superior team in the opening stages and could have doubled their advantage, but the game became more evenly balanced after Benzema’s moment of magic. The goal took Benzema UCL tally to 71 goals, drawing him level with a true Madrid legend, Raul Gonzalez Blanco. He will be pivotal to Zidane’s plotting of their second leg, and on his good day, he is unplayable.
Although Zidane tried to play the sensationalism of using one of theirs against them by introducing the returning Eden Hazard, former Chelsea whiz kid and playmaker, with 24 minutes left on the clock, there was not much Hazard could inject into the side that was going to make a huge difference enough to bother the composure of the hardened Chelsea backline.
Qualification through this pairing becomes a game of the team that can best approach the second leg with the tactical difference to take all the points and go to the final of Europe’s elite football competition when these sides meet next, with Chelsea having the best advantage with their away goal and with the added benefit of hosting upper hand.
They will go at it again on Wednesday, May 5 at Stamford Bridge.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
